


leave this place behind in silence

by guidingmoon



Category: LOONA (Korea Band)
Genre: F/F, featuring cameos from dreamcatcher and other ggs because i can't help being self-indulgent, side chuulip
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-20
Updated: 2019-05-20
Packaged: 2020-03-08 04:37:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,840
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18887323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/guidingmoon/pseuds/guidingmoon
Summary: Studying at SNU, Sooyoung, Haseul, and Jinsol are each finding their own path in life. Their journey isn't an easy one, with their family legacies hanging over their heads.As the girls learn to adjust to the pressures of their community, and their parents' expectations, they find solace in unexpected places.





	leave this place behind in silence

**Author's Note:**

> Somewhat inspired by Sky Castle. This won't follow the events of the show. 
> 
> Fic title from 'Hearts Like Ours' by The Naked and Famous.
> 
> This is dedicated to a certain someone 🥰

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which the girls return home for the summer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from 'The Runners' by The Naked and Famous.

Sooyoung gets an all-important call from her parents when she’s in the middle of delivering a presentation to first years at SNU Business School. Her phone rings loudly from her bag, which is on the opposite side of the room. That’s her only saving grace; she ignores it, and plays it off like it belongs to someone else, avoiding her professor’s curious gaze.

Her professor only just buys it, though he gives the whole class a warning about keeping their phones turned off, as he looks directly at Sooyoung.

It’s clear she’s going to get top marks yet again for this assessment, but Sooyoung’s concerned that her professor might dock a couple of points off for the interruption, so she mutters a heartfelt apology at the end of the class.

As soon as she leaves the room, she checks her phone and it comes as no surprise to her that she’s missed a call from her mother. Knowing that she’ll get in trouble if she doesn’t get back to her as soon as possible, Sooyoung hurries outside to wait for the bus, dialling her home number.

“Sooyoung, you finally called,” her mother says by way of greeting.

“I was halfway through a presentation,” Sooyoung explains. “It’s worth 20% of my grade for this semester.”

“It’s good to hear you’re working so hard, but we’d expect nothing less of you in your third year,” her mother says, her tone steely.

Sooyoung grits her teeth and forces herself to remain calm. “I know, I’m trying,” she replies. “Why did you ring me?”

Her mother clears her throat and, when she speaks again, she sounds upbeat, if that’s even possible within her limited range of emotions. “There’s a dinner party on the weekend, to celebrate Professor Jeon’s promotion. I expect to you be here for that.”

Considering declining the request, Sooyoung racks her brain for a plausible excuse, but she’s not quick enough.

“Don’t bother trying to get out of it,” her mother says harshly. “I know full well that your semester finishes this week. Your father has clear instructions about when the chauffeur will pick you up on Friday.”

“That’s not enough time for me to get ready,” Sooyoung protests. She regrets her words immediately, when she hears a sharp intake of breath on the other side of the line. Sooyoung curses under her breath, apologising to the people standing next to her at the bus stop when her mother begins shouting down the phone at her.

Just a regular phone call with her mother.

At dinner that night with her friends, Soobin and Jihyo, there’s finally some time for Sooyoung to relax. This semester’s taken its toll on her in many different ways, but she’s grateful to have support from those closest to her. With the pressures from her parents, Sooyoung is hardly looking forward to returning home for the summer, but she has little choice.

The restaurant Soobin chooses is informal, allowing the girls to dress down a little from their usual attire. Sooyoung’s tired of wearing blazers and long skirts all the time, and she knows Jihyo shares the sentiment, being a fellow Business student.

“So I hear there’s another one of those infamous Sky Castle dinner parties coming up,” Soobin says, once they’ve ordered their food and have finished catching up on other affairs.

“Yeah,” Sooyoung sighs. She takes a sip of her drink and looks away pointedly.

Soobin doesn’t get the hint. “How does the mighty Ha Sooyoung feel about that?”

Sooyoung sends her a dirty look. “You _know_ I couldn’t care less. Jesus, my parents are probably hosting, for all I know.”

“They are,” Jihyo says. “I got the invitation yesterday. Do you know if we can bring a plus one?”

“If it’s for Professor Jeon, I’m sure he wouldn’t mind,” Soobin says. Though she’s not a resident of the community, she’s been a guest at Sooyoung and Jihyo’s houses enough times to become acquainted with other residents.

Sooyoung shakes her head. “Since my parents are hosting, they would have explicitly stated if plus-ones are allowed.”

“Who would you bring anyways?” Soobin asks Jihyo. “You can’t take Mina, your parents would kill you.”

“If I introduce her to everyone as my friend, I can get away with it,” Jihyo posits. “She’s come to a party before.”

“That was before you were dating her,” Sooyoung says. “Besides, that event was less formal than a dinner party. It would be too risky this time.”

Soobin nods in agreement. “Bringing your girlfriend is a bad idea, even if you’re doing well together. I don’t think she could handle the judgement from everyone there.”

Jihyo sighs in defeat. “You’re right,” she says glumly. “Anyways, Sooyoung, how’s _your_ girlfriend?”

“My girlfriend?” Sooyoung looks at her, puzzled.

“You know, that girl you were seeing last month...Bora? She’s good friends with Siyeon, right?”

Soobin glances curiously at Sooyoung. “You never mentioned her to me.”

“Oh, Bora, right,” Sooyoung laughs. “That was a one-time thing.”

Jihyo smirks. “Pretty sure it was more like a six-time thing but if you want to twist the facts, that’s fine by me. Just know that I’m not buying it.”

“Shut up,” Sooyoung mutters, giving her a small kick under the table. She grins when Jihyo yelps and pushes back her chair so that Sooyoung can’t reach her ankles again.

There’s a lull in the conversation as the waiter brings over their food and the girls tuck in eagerly, all incredibly hungry after their busy days. Just as Sooyoung’s about to bring up a new topic to avoid talking about her love-life, she’s one-upped by Soobin.

“What about Haseul? I thought you were seeing her,” Soobin asks. There’s no cheeky smile or any trace of mischief in her eyes; Sooyoung knows she’s asking out of genuine interest and concern.

“That’s a difficult one,” Sooyoung replies, trying her best to indulge Soobin. She feels her throat closing up.

Jihyo gives her a comforting smile. “You don’t have to go into it,” she says. “I get that it’s complicated.”

“It’s not really,” Sooyoung admits. “We just - Haseul and I haven’t talked about any of it. It’s like none of it matters to her.”

“You’re jumping to conclusions,” Soobin warns. “If you haven’t even discussed anything yet, how do you know she’s not into you? Maybe you’ll see her this weekend at the dinner party. You should ask her how she feels.”

Sooyoung frowns. “I never said there were feelings involved,” she says defensively.

Jihyo fixes Sooyoung with a stern gaze. “Look, clearly there’s something going on that you’re refusing to admit, and that’s okay,” she says. “I just think you need to be honest with yourself about this. If you are into Haseul, and it’s not just about hooking up with her, you should come clean. The last thing you want to do is get tangled up with her and end up hurting yourself in the process. Tell her what’s going on before you get too caught up with her.”

“Fine,” Sooyoung huffs. “This doesn’t mean I’m admitting I have feelings for her, though. It just means I’ll talk to her about where we stand.”

“Good,” Soobin grins. “I’m definitely not up for dealing with you moping around after summer if things go downhill.”

“You call yourself a friend?” Sooyoung teases.

“Of course I’ll be there for you,” Soobin says. “You guys want dessert?”

  
—

 

Wednesday evening, Haseul is packing clothes and travel accessories away into several suitcases. She stands back from her bags and surveys the hotel room she’s in, scanning the floors for any stray socks that may be lying around. There’s none to be found, so she starts zipping up the suitcases one by one.

A series of rapid fire knocks at the door interrupts her progress. Haseul crosses the room swiftly and opens the door. Her friends Minji and Bora stand outside, their arms laden with snacks.

“What’s this?” Haseul grins.

“Since it’s our last night in Europe we have to celebrate!” Bora exclaims, bounding into the room. Minji follows close behind her, dropping a few packets of chips on the way.

"Relax, it's not like this is going to be our last trip for the course," Haseul says. "There's that program in Washington over winter break."

Bora wiggles her eyebrows. "Of course, as 'Miss International Relations Student of the Year' you'll be applying to that."

Haseul rolls her eyes. "More like my parents are forcing me to do all these extra-curriculars," she states.

"Don't say that like it's a burden," Minji nudges her. "I know everyone in Sky Castle is crazy, but you're getting amazing opportunities. A lot of that has got to do with your parents and the money they invest in you."

"You know, if it were anyone else saying that, I'd deck them," Haseul says, her tone playful. "I'll let you off the hook.

Tipping the snacks onto Haseul's bed, Bora sifts through them, picking out her favorites. "Minji's just calling it as she sees it," she pipes up. "You're one of the elite. Luckily you don't act like it. We wouldn't be friends otherwise."

Minji chucks a chocolate bar at Bora's head. "You say that as if your parents aren't both CEOs of some of the most influential companies in Seoul."

"You're one to talk, too," Bora says. "Or did your father resign as head of SNUH?"

"Shut up," Minji bites back. "Anyway, we've finished all our packing. Do you need any help?"

Haseul regards the state of her suitcases and she nods, accepting Minji's offer quickly. They struggle to close one of them, as the zip gets stuck. After persuading Bora to get up from her spot where she's made herself comfortable on Haseul's bed, the three of them finally manage to shut all of Haseul's bags. 

"I can't believe you brought so much with you," Minji says. 

"I'm going straight home from the airport, remember?" Haseul points out. "I hope everything fits in the taxi."

"Your father's not sending a driver for you?" Minji enquires. 

Haseul pulls a face. "As if he'd actually go to the effort. He told me to use my own money for the taxi. Not that it's a problem, but the least he could do was offer." 

Bora flops back onto the bed. “By the way, your friend back at Sky Castle, what’s her name...she does aerospace engineering, I think she’s called-”

“Jungeun?”

Bora nods. “Yeah, Jungeun. What’s she up to this summer?”

Haseul narrows her eyes. “Why do you want to know?”

“Oh, it’s nothing like that,” Bora laughs. “She’s too young for me anyway. My parents want to offer her an internship at their company.”

“Wow, that’s impressive,” Haseul whistles. “I’ll tell Jungeun when I see her. I guess your parents will send her something about it, though.”

“T-minus 2 days until you're home,” Minji says. “Looking forward to seeing Sooyoung again, hmm?”

“Stop it,” Haseul mumbles, her cheeks heating up.

Minji gives her a warm smile. “You really haven’t been subtle with your pining, Haseul,” she says playfully. “Sooyoung can probably feel it from across the city.”

“I swear to god if you don’t shut up!” Haseul lunges at Minji, starting a fake wrestling match. Bora watches with amusement as the two of them roll around the floor.

  
—

 

In the living room of her apartment, Jinsol thumbs through a bunch of papers, chewing on her pen as she tries to concentrate on the statistics in front of her. "Yoohyeon, can you look over these for me?" she calls.

Her roommate appears from the kitchen a few seconds later, equipped with two mugs of coffee. She sets them down on the coffee table. "Hello?" she says. "Linguistics student here. Jinsol, you know I'm not qualified to go over your work, I literally cannot understand a single thing you tell me to check."

Jinsol gives Yoohyeon her best puppy dog eyes. "Please, I need to know if these look right. I couldn't find anyone at the internship to help me."

"Fine," Yoohyeon sighs. She takes the papers from Jinsol and scans them, her brow furrowing as she works hard to try and understand what Jinsol's written. "That looks good," she says, handing them back. "How come you don't have a copy of the original documents so you can double check?"

Jinsol huffs. “They didn’t let me take the files back with me, so I couldn’t do any work at the library last night.”

Yoohyeon pulls a face. “Wow, that must have been _so_ annoying.”

“Shut up, Miss 4.0. If you actually studied instead of spending all your time with Minji-”

“I study!” Yoohyeon protests. “But I have a girlfriend _and_ a 4.0 gpa, so who’s the real winner here? I don’t see you maintaining a good gpa whilst dating. Your 4.3 would go down the drain.”

Jinsol’s face falls. “That was a low blow,” she sulks. “I’ve _tried_. No one's been interested in me.”

“Not yet,” Yoohyeon grins. “Just wait. This summer I bet you’ll find a girl.”

"About that..." Jinsol says sheepishly. "There's actually someone I'm into, but she has feelings for someone else."

Yoohyeon gapes at her. "Hold on, you've been keeping this from me? Jung Jinsol, I can't believe you! How many times have I told you that you can come to me about anything? Why haven't you said anything?"

"It's nothing against you, I just didn't feel like it was the right time to say yet," Jinsol says reassuringly. "Don't worry, I don't have feelings for you or Minji, if that's why you were thinking I kept it from you."

"Oh, that would just be weird," Yoohyeon pulls a face. "You know better than to fall for your friends, anyway."

Jinsol just nods, grabbing her cup of coffee to hide her face. She can't help but laugh quietly to herself at Yoohyeon's words. 

"Speaking of your friends, you're going back home tomorrow, right?" Yoohyeon asks. 

"Yeah, my parents want me back in good time for the dinner party," Jinsol says. "I'm kind of nervous about seeing everyone again."

Yoohyeon pats her leg. "Hey, it will be fine," she soothes. "You get to see Haseul and Jungeun again, right? That should be fun."

At the mention of Haseul's name, Jinsol stiffens. She hopes Yoohyeon doesn't notice her sudden change of mood, and she tries to play it off. "It's been a while since we were all together," she says. "I can't wait to see Vivi and Hyunjin. The other girls, too. I think some of them won't be there because they're abroad, like Haseul."

"I know how much you miss them all," Yoohyeon teases. "Imagine if all the parents were the same as the girls. The amount of good those families could do in the world, if only they used their influence."

Jinsol purses her lips and nods. "It's despicable, really," she says. "My family tries their best and I know we could do so much better. Still, the other families in Sky Castle hardly do anything to benefit people other than themselves. I wish I could respect them, but they make it so hard."

"Well, at least you're setting a great example," Yoohyeon beams. "If any of the parents talk shit about you again, call me and I'll come beat them up for you."

  
—

 

Although she's only been home for a day, Sooyoung's just about ready to tear her hair out already. Her parents have taken the opportunity to rope her into helping get the house into shape for hosting the dinner party. Sooyoung's always felt bad for the people her parents employ at this sort of occasions, so she does her best to pitch in, though she can't help but think of how much better it would be if she were down by the lake relaxing instead. 

"Sooyoung, can you go over to the Jo household and ask for our tablecloths back?" her mother asks, later in the afternoon. "They forgot to return them after the celebration for Kim Jiwoo's acceptance to SNU."

Reluctantly, Sooyoung drags herself out of the house, starting the descent down the road to the Jo's house. When she gets there, she's surprised to see a taxi parked outside. The door opens just as she's walking past.

Sooyoung stops dead in her tracks. “Haseul?” She peers into the taxi. “I didn’t know you were coming home.”

Stepping out of the taxi, Haseul rolls her eyes. “Hi, it’s great to see you too, Sooyoung.”

“Sorry, I meant to-”

“Don’t worry about it,” Haseul chuckles. “I just thought I’d get a better welcome from someone who got on her knees for me last time we saw each other.”

Sooyoung shoots a look at the driver, who seems to be busy with his phone. She breathes a sigh of relief. “You can’t just say things like that Haseul,” she hisses.

“You’re embarrassed by it now?” A flicker of hurt crosses Haseul’s face.

“No, it's just that you can’t say things like that here,” Sooyoung says. “Not when our parents are around.”

Haseul snickers. “That didn’t phase you before, when we hooked up at your place.”

“They weren’t in the house that time,” Sooyoung retorts.

“You think they can hear us out here?” Haseul asks. “It’s hard seeing you being so scared of them.”

Sooyoung stares after Haseul, frozen to the spot. When Haseul drops a bag, Sooyoung snaps out of it and rushes to her side.

“Let me help,” she urges, taking the majority of Haseul’s suitcases. They both struggle up the steps to Haseul’s house, cursing the taxi driver.

“Your father should have sent you his chauffeur,” Sooyoung says, panting as she drags the last of the suitcases up to the front door.

Haseul shrugs. “He would have just complained about the extra cost. You know him, he never wants to 'spoil' his family.”

They both stare at the door. Eventually, Sooyoung lifts a hand and rings the bell, out of politeness. 

"I came over to get our tablecloths back," she explains to Haseul. "I hate it when my parents host."

"Tell me about it," Haseul says lowly, clocking the sound of footsteps inside the house. 

The door opens and out steps Haseul's mother. She smiles curtly at Sooyoung. "Thank you for helping Haseul with her belongings," she says. "We'll be fine from here." She ushers Haseul inside the house and is just about to shut the door on Sooyoung.

"Wait!" Sooyoung calls out. "My mother wanted to ask you for our tablecloths. We left them here after Jiwoo's celebration and forgot to get them back."

When Haseul's mother goes to find them, Sooyoung's half hoping that Haseul will stay and entertain her whilst she waits. She hears raised voices, sounding like they're coming from the kitchen, and she lets go of those hopes. She takes the cloths as quickly as she can, barely meeting Haseul's mother's eyes, out of respect. She acts like she never heard the commotion.

   
—

 

Jinsol's never enjoyed dinner parties at Sky Castle, let alone any sort of celebration, for that matter. There's many reasons for her dislike of such occasions, but it mostly has to do with the fact that the parents of all the families seem to view these events as a stage on which they can brag about their children's achievements. 

She's sat at a table with everyone her age and below, listening in to the raucous conversation coming from the parents' tables. Jinsol catches the eye of her good friend Wong Vivi, who's sitting across from her, and they make faces at each other out of boredom. 

"Jinsol, how's your third year going?" Jeon Heejin asks. Her father's the reason they're here tonight, and if it was someone else, Jinsol would probably be mad. However, Jinsol can't find a single thing to fault about Heejin, so she can't blame her for the mess that's inevitably about to go down, whether at the adults' table, or on this one.

"It's going really well, thanks," Jinsol replies, giving Heejin a wide smile. She gives her a wink when she sees that Heejin's holding hands with Hyunjin under the table. Jinsol knows how close those two have grown over the years, and she's pleased to see that the nature of their relationship is blossoming into something beautiful.

"You know, Jinsol, I noticed how you didn't come to Sooyoung's birthday in Seoul," Haseul says suddenly. "She invited all of us."

“I thought you hated Sooyoung,” Hyunjin states. She lets go of Heejin’s hand under the table and stands up to reach across and grab the salt bowl.

Jinsol shoots her a panicked look. “Don’t say that right in front of her,” she whispers.

“She’s just telling the truth,” Yeojin pipes up.

“I don’t need to hear from a kid,” Jinsol scoffs. However, she ruffles Yeojin’s hair fondly.

Opposite her, Sooyoung raises an eyebrow. “You got something to say to me, Jung?”

Jinsol rolls her eyes. “There’s nothing I need to tell you,” she says.

“Oh, but I heard something about you hating me,” Sooyoung sing-songs. She winks at Hyunjin, who suddenly shrinks underneath Jinsol’s harsh gaze. Heejin grabs her hand again and soothes her girlfriend.

Next to Sooyoung sits Haseul, who’s watching the exchange with amusement. Her lips are pressed together, in an attempt to contain her laughter.

Jinsol doesn’t miss how Haseul’s hand rests on the table, dangerously close to Sooyoung’s arm. She wonders whether they’ve started something again - she once saw them back during winter break, kissing outside of her own house, when her family was hosting a dinner just like this one. Jinsol wouldn’t put it past them to have hooked up over the past few months.

“So, answer the question,” Jiwoo challenges. Her eyes are twinkling as she locks eyes with Jinsol and smirks at her. Jinsol has no clue what she’s done to deserve this from even the likes of Kim Jiwoo, who’s always so polite and not at all confrontational. She suspects that Jungeun’s attitude has rubbed off on Jiwoo, from all that time they’ve been dating.

“I don’t hate you,” Jinsol says, her mouth dry. She makes sure to look as sincere as possible when she meets Sooyoung’s eyes. It’s not as if she’s lying through her teeth; she really doesn’t hate Sooyoung, but sometimes it’s hard not to harbor some resentment towards the girl who forced her to drop out of the school elections back in their final year of school.

“That’s unconvincing,” Jiwoo says, sounding disappointed. She claps her hands together. “Jung Jinsol, you’re challenged to come up with three reasons why you don’t hate Sooyoung.”

Jinsol tightens her grip on her fork. “That seems unnecessary,” she says.

“No, I agree with Jiwoo, we should do it,” Jungeun declares. “Prove to us that you like her.”

"Okay," Jinsol says nervously. "I admire Sooyoung for getting into Business school. That's not an easy achievement."

Sooyoung rolls her eyes. "That's a cop-out," she whines. 

"Give us the second reason," Jiwoo says impatiently. "It has to be more meaningful."

Jinsol mulls over what she could pick out about Sooyoung. There's a lot of things she could say, but most of them she would never dare to admit, and certainly not in front of a whole table full of Sky Castle residents. Who knows what tall tales and rumours they can spin, just from an innocent comment.

"I like that Sooyoung's always considerate of people, and she goes out of her way to help those that need it," Jinsol says. She wonders whether it seems like she's laying it on a little thick now, but she really isn't lying about that one.

Satisfied with that answer, Jungeun grins at her. “Number three?”

Jinsol deliberates for a few seconds. “Sooyoung’s incredibly attractive.”

A chorus of ‘oohs’ echoes around the table, all the girls turning to whisper to each other. Jinsol makes sure to fix Sooyoung with an unwavering gaze. She takes note of Sooyoung’s surprise and smiles to herself.

Haseul’s expression flickers for a tiny moment, her smile fading at Jinsol’s words. Her hand on the table shifts closer to Sooyoung’s.

It’s Jiwoo who breaks the silence. “Well, that’s not news, is it?” she exclaims. “Sooyoung’s always been the hottest one here.”

Jungeun coughs uncomfortably next to her. Jiwoo leans into her and whispers something, which is clearly enough to relax Jungeun immediately, because a smile falls across her face and she laces her fingers with Jiwoo’s.

“You can admit that you’re dating Jungeun, you know,” Heejin says suddenly. She’s hardly spoken a word all dinner, so all heads turn to her, shocked. “What? It’s not like it’s a big revelation. You guys aren’t subtle.”

The awkward atmosphere is broken when Jiwoo starts laughing. She turns to Jungeun, who's looking completely lost, and beams at her. "Babe, this means we don't have to hide it anymore."

Jungeun's expression turns to one of relief. "That's one way to look at it, I guess," she says. "But our parents can't know."

Everyone around the table nods. 

"Don't worry, we would never tell," Choi Yerim says, deadly serious. She's usually the very picture of brightness, so to see her being so earnest solidifies her promise. Everyone follows her lead and reassures Jungeun and Jiwoo, vowing to keep their relationship under wraps. Though it isn't a grand gesture, Jinsol's glad to see that so many of them are taking this to heart.

 

—

 

The parents have started dancing to the chamber orchestra, so Jinsol and the others figure it's as good a time as any to take a break from the bustle of the evening. Jinsol spends a while chatting with Vivi and then makes small talk with some of the girls she hasn't caught up with yet, like Park Chaewon and Son Hyejoo, but she soon excuses herself. She needs to take a moment away from everyone.

In the washroom, Jinsol is washing her hands when she hears a knock at the door. “Just a second!” she calls, rushing to dry off her hands. When she opens the door, she almost walks right into Haseul.

“Oh, you’re - I’m sorry,” Jinsol stutters, trying to manoeuvre herself out of the way. Before she can get any further, Haseul stops her with a gentle hand on her arm.

“I just want you to know something,” Haseul says. Her expression is fierce, and Jinsol gulps at the sight of Haseul looking angry. It’s not something she’s experienced much before. She doesn’t like the way her stomach twinges at Haseul’s low tone.

“What is it?” Jinsol asks, breath almost catching in her throat. She can’t help but feel intimidated by the other girl, even if she stands inches above Haseul.

Haseul takes a step closer to her, and now there’s next to no space between them. “If you talk about Sooyoung like that again…” she growls.

Jinsol racks her brain. “Like what?”

“Calling her attractive.”

“It was the only thing that came to mind,” Jinsol says defensively. “I’m not going to take your girlfriend away, don’t worry.”

Haseul steps back, blinking rapidly. “She’s not my - we’re not dating,” she splutters.

“Yeah yeah, sure,” Jinsol waves her off. “Come up with a more convincing argument. How about you give me three reasons why you’re not dating her?”

Haseul scowls at her. “That was Jiwoo’s idea, not mine,” she says.

“You didn’t stop her, though,” Jinsol points out. “I saw you and Sooyoung back at Christmas.”

“Saw us?” Haseul looks lost.

“You were kissing her,” Jinsol says. “You have feelings for her, right?”

Haseul opens her mouth, but nothing comes out. She dips her head and looks down at the floor. “It’s not that straightforward.”

Jinsol softens and she places a hand on Haseul’s shoulder. “I get it,” she says quietly. “You can’t have that kind of distraction while you’re studying.”

"You've been through the same thing?" Haseul asks, daring to really  _look_ at Jinsol. She takes in the soft curve of her cheeks, the way her hair falls over her forehead prettily, how her lips part ever so slightly and  _oh_ , Haseul's staring is too obvious, because Jinsol tilts her head and gives her a curious look. 

"In a way I have," Jinsol replies. "It's not the same situation as yours, though. My feelings are...unrequited. At least you and Sooyoung feel the same way about each other."

"How do you know?" Haseul gasps.

Jinsol chuckles. "It's not hard to tell. Sooyoung gets this certain expression whenever she looks at you. I've never seen her look at anyone else like that."

Haseul blushes deeply. "We haven't talked about it, really," she admits. "It's good to hear that. Thank you, Jinsol."

“I hope it works out for you two, you deserve to be happy,” Jinsol says, giving her a kind smile in parting.

Haseul watches Jinsol walk away. She ignores the fluttering in her stomach, and not even for a second does she dwell on the fact that the sensation was caused by someone who isn't Sooyoung. 

**Author's Note:**

> [my twitter](https://twitter.com/chuulipseuls)


End file.
